Homes sales show slight decline

Sales of new and existing homes fell slightly last month in the Capital Region, even as sales in Albany County spiked, according to statistics released today by the Greater Capital Association of Realtors Inc.

In January, 576 single-family home sales closed in the association’s 11-county region, compared to 581 sales in January 2006. That’s a 1 percent decline.

Prices, however, rose. The median sale price in the region for the month was $190,000, compared to $180,000 for the year-ago period, a 6 percent increase.

Albany County bucked the trend: The number of closed sales there for the month jumped 23 percent, to 166 from 135 in the year-ago period. The median sale prices in the county increased 15 percent, to $207,250 from $180,000.

Meanwhile, the number of sales in Schenectady County in January was down 31 percent, from 107 to 74, while sales in Rensselaer County fell 23 percent, from 83 to 64.

Both counties, though, saw median prices rise: Rensselaer County prices increased 14 percent, while there was a 5 percent rise in Schenectady County.